There is a growing requirement for conformal barrier coatings or films having high adhesion for corrosion protection, water proofing, surface decoration, for medical device passivation, circuit board moisture protection, consumer electronic devices and a wide variety of industrial, consumer devices and similar objects. There is a need to better engineer the air-substrate interface of such films for specific applications. For example, it is often desirable for films to modify the substrate surface without altering the bulk properties of the substrate. It is sometimes desirable to engineer films to have the potential to enhance the structural and functional performance of fabricated polymeric devices. Enhancement of the surface can occur with designed organic, inorganic or hybrid polymeric coatings. However, many existing films suffer from poor adhesive bonding to the underlying surface, since the device materials construction are inherently non-reactive to reduce the incidence of reactions with the surrounding tissues.